It’s housed in a nondescript building on Utica Road, but for the thousands of area residents who walk through its doors, the structure that houses CARE of Southeastern Michigan is a place of hope and healing.

CARE, a nonprofit that serves as a referral agency for uninsured or Medicaid-eligible individuals struggling with drug and alcohol addiction in addition to providing support services for parents, children, and adults through several programs, has served as a starting point for people seeking to resolve some of life’s most vexing problems since 1977.

On Nov. 7, the agency celebrated 35 years of providing nonbiased, supportive services at a breakfast at the Eleanor and Edsel Ford House.

Monique Stanton, the executive director of CARE, said that while many changes have occurred since the agency was founded, services have evolved to meet those challenges.

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“What we’ve noticed is that people that come to us need more services, and more intensive interventions,” she said. “They’re having issues with losing a job, which many have caused their use of drugs or alcohol. Sometimes, they’re making half of what they used to make, and they’re having difficulty tapping into resource.

“We’re here to help them find resources, or take part in programs, that can get them on the road to recovery,” said Stanton, who took over the agency in February.

A compassionate history

CARE initially opened its doors as a free-standing assessment agency that referred clients to long-term drug or alcohol treatment programs based on their needs in a nonjudgmental environment. But during 30 years, the agency expanded its role. Today, CARE’s services include educational programs designed to encourage young people to avoid alcohol and tobacco use, parenting support and education, anger management courses and women’s support.

Additionally, CARE also provides crisis intervention services for employers through its WorkLife Solutions program. When a traumatic situation has taken place; trained individuals are deployed to the workplace within 48 to 72 hours to assist employees in working through emotional issues caused by a critical incident. Through contracts with businesses, CARE also offers employees assistance programs that can help clients work through work-related stressors.

The Student Assistance Program offers parents and children an opportunity to obtain a comprehensive mental health workup on teens who may be experiencing mental health or substance abuse issues, and receive treatment options on a sliding fee scale.

CARE works with Macomb County Prisoner Re-Entry to provide support services to offenders to make their transition to freedom easier and reduce the likelihood of recidivism. The program takes place within the Macomb Regional Correctional Facility and at its transitional housing, and focuses skill-building, positive relationship and managing anger.

Many of CARE’s services benefit children. The Start Making it Livable for Everyone, or SMILE, program provides monthly counseling for parents in divorce proceedings, and a supervised parenting program that assures supervised transfers between children in parents. Parents who use the transfer program are ordered to by the 16th Circuit Court Family Division; both programs are part of a partnership between CARE and the Macomb County Friend of the Court.

Lynn Davidson, the director of Friend of the Court, said the supervised parent program is not one her organization could operate on its own.

“The program with CARE allows us, when there are custody issues, to provides a neutral setting for visits that are monitored and safe,” she said. “Because a lot of time the visits take place on the weekend, when the court is closed, it gives parents and children access to visitation at a facility that is friendly.

“It’s a steppingstone that helps establish a bond between the parent and child,” she added.

Community needs

If ever there was a time when interventions and solution were needed for people who abuse substances, it is now. According to the Michigan Department of Community Health, excessive use of alcohol was the third leading lifestyle cause of death for Americans. The National Survey of Drug Use and Health indicated that in Michigan, 9 percent of residents 12 years old and over reported using drugs.

CARE serves about 15,000 people per year, according to Stanton. In 2012, 5,810 people participated in education programs, 489 participated in case management programs, and 3,532 were provided access to treatment through various programs. CARE is funded through its contracts with governments, private businesses and other entities, grants and private donations.

Though the agency has dealt with an uptick in the number of people requiring services and the changing nature of what people need, the upturn in the economy is not likely to lessen the load for CARE’s small staff, Stanton said.

One thing that has changed since 1977 is how people view substance abuse.

“I think we have a greater understanding what causes substance abuse,” Stanton said. “It’s a very serious problem; people used to think that preventative measures didn’t work.

“But we see with decreasing tobacco use that prevention does work,” she added. “It just takes a lot of time, effort and repeated messages.”